A Merit Badge for Advanced Engineering
Cub Scouts apply design software
by Richard Mandel
Few things reside in America that stir a
more Norman Rockwell-hued feeling than scouting. Cub Scouts, Brownies, Boy
Scouts and Girl Scouts--all suggest an earlier time shared with tail-finned
cars, hi-fi and black and white television. Happily, scouting has adapted
and grown with the world around it, applying the basic tenets and skills
to modern times. There's always a need for knot-tying expertise.
One of the long standing activities in Cub Scouts has been the Pinewood
Derby, an annual event that provides hands-on education in woodworking,
engineering, craftsmanship and safety while also involving a parent. To
participate involves starting with an Official Pinewood Derby kit, which
contains the requisite four wheels and two axles, plus an ordinary block
of pine marked with locations for the axle slots. Number decals and basic
building instructions are also included, but it's up to the child to turn
the rectangular block into a sleek racing vehicle that meets the required
specifications of 2.75-in. in width and 7-in. in length, with a weight of
precisely 5 ounces.
Now, it's conceivable that a kid who has a parent who works as an engineer
may have an edge, but the world of scouting tries to ensure the child performs
his own design and construction. Despite Internet sources offering to "Make
Your Child a Winner Every Time," David Knoble, a CATIA application
engineer for IBM, suggested to his son's pack that they could gain additional
engineering experience using CAD software. So, after the five middle-school-aged
boys completed their initial paper drawings for their cars (as required
by the Boy Scout rulebook), they went to a local machine shop and used a
CATIA V5 station to convert the drawings into 3D. The boys next learned
how to create toolpaths, which were posted to the shop's NC machines to
perform the cutting. Each scout then assembled and finished his car with
more traditional methods.
The parents were amazed with what the five 11-year-olds could understand
and apply with the sophisticated technologies. Regardless of the fact that
two of the vehicles took high honors, it's reassuring to know that there's
five kids who've learned that there's more to computers than video games
and surfing the 'net.
For more information:
Circle 464 - IBM CATIA, or connect directly to their website
via the Online Reader Service Program at http://www.OneRS.net/107df-464
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